Everyone Deserves A Second Chance, Right?
by princessoffireskies
Summary: Second chances are sometimes a long time coming... ON HIATUS! I have writers block!
1. It Begins

EVERYONE DESERVES A SECOND CHANCE, RIGHT?

A.N. – This is my first attempt at fanfiction, so any reviews, especially helpful ones, would be great.

Disclaimer – I do not own any of the characters and/or settings from the shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel the Series, they belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy alone.

Teaser

"Yeah, Buffy. What are we gonna do now?" Dawn said.

How do I answer that question, thought Buffy, after all, the hellmouth was finally "closed for business" as Faith had put it, the apocalypse was over, the First scrunched, now she could finally have the chance to talk properly with…

Buffy suddenly sank to her knees, tears silently making rivers down her cheeks. He was gone…

"Guys, you know I hate to be the one to say this but…, where's Spike?" Xander asked.

"Oh my goddess, Buffy…" Willow whispered, a look of realisation filling her eyes as she knelt down next to her best friend, enfolding her in a hug, holding her as she cried.

"Willow, what is it?" Dawn begged.

"Spike closed the hellmouth – and he never made it out."

Dawn dropped down and joined her sister in tears, clinging on to the slayer and wiccan.


	2. The Dawnie Express

Disclaimer – As I have said I do not own any characters or settings, the belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy.

A year later, LA (about NFA)

"Well, personally, I kinda want to slay the dragon."

The four fighters begin the war, when a flash of green light comes from behind them. They spin round in shock as the demons in front of them froze…

"Hey Angel. Brought you an army, courtesy of the Dawnie Express," Dawn said, "though why you tried to start an apocalypse without us, I just don't know. What goes on in you head these days, I mean are there even thought processes or…" she broke off, suddenly realising that the fourth person with Angel was… "Spike?"

"'Ello, niblet. Long time, no see," the vamp-in-question said, half-wondering which threat she'd use this time…

"Spike!" Dawnie ran to her almost-brother, hugging so tightly that, had he need to, he wouldn't have been able to breathe, "I missed you. I didn't really want to set you on fire, I was just being stupid, I'm so sorry, where have you been, how did you get here, when…" she babbled.

"Shh, bit. Got a battle to fight. And since when have you been able to teleport, anyway?"

"Comes with being the Key. As I get older I get more neat powers!" the girl replied.

"Wait a minute – you saying you're some kinda key?" Gunn questioned.

"Long story," Willow put in, "and I can't hold these demons off forever, you know!"

"Right, Will," Xander said, raising his voice so the slayers could hear him, "Group A, you're with Faith, take the left side, Group B, under Vi and Rona, the right, Group C, stay with me, we're protecting Willow, the last two groups, stay with Dawn and Kennedy, you're helping Angel and his team, Andrew, take those stairs up to the roof, you should have a clear view from up there, I hope that thing works, we got a dragon on our hands. Everyone got that? Yes? Now go! Oh Will, do you think we can give this guy a quick healing spell?"

The slayer and Andrew had already moved, by the time Willow, hair slightly paler, chanted a few words in Latin, healing Gunn completely. She then followed her group to a rooftop, where she would cast her spells. Dawn reached into her bag for a knife, quickly tucking it away inside her belt.

"Er, Dawn, I think your going to need that," Angel said.

"Oh, you mean the knife. I only use that as a last resort," the girl answered.

"So what do you use?" the brunette vampire asked.

"Hello, mystical Key here! I use my birthright. The Key's power," she said, as a swirl of greenish light wrapped around her body.

"OK, everybody ready?" Xander called, "Demons wake up in three, two, one, NOW!"

With those word the enemy awoke, hurtling towards them with terrible cries…


	3. Viewpoint

Disclaimer – I do not own any characters or settings from the shows Buffy or Angel. They belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy.

Before the demons even reached Angel, Dawn, Spike and the others with them, Rona and Vi's group along with Faith's had taken some out, surprising them with a sudden attack from both sides. Then Kennedy gave a command and her troops charged forwards, leaving Angel behind.

He recovered quickly though, rushing forward to join the fight, followed by Gunn, Iryllia and Spike. They were still out numbered by the enemy, but the vampire knew that didn't make a difference. These were slayers, strong, trained and there was Willow, a powerful Wiccan. As to Xander and Andrew's purpose there he had no clue, and as to Dawn's mysterious "birthright"… Angel shook his head and threw himself back into the fray.

Spike hadn't felt so good in a long time. His niblet was there – and not mad at him. Yet. There was no telling what she would say when she heard his story… but there was no use thinking about that right now. Right now, there was an army of demons to kill, Little Bit wasn't out to kill him and Spike was having fun. One thing worried him, where was Buffy? Surely she would have come…

The air around Willow crackled with magick and spells. Her hair glowed diamond bright, white as snow. A continuous stream of incantations came from her mouth, Latin filled her ears. She was in control, joy surged through her body, power coursed through her veins. And through it all, Xander watched her, in case of trouble, to defend his best friend.

Andrew stood alone on a roof top, pulling a machine out of his rucksack. He tweaked a few screws, flipped a few switches, turned a few dials and then he was ready. He took aim at the dragon – muttering under his breath, "Please, oh please work. Don't let me down, work, please work." – and pressed a button. A beam of light shot out of the contraption, hitting the dragon square in the chest as it flew over as building. The great beast froze solid, falling to the rooftop below with force, shattering on impact. He'd done it.

Green mist wrapped ever tighter around Dawn, as she hung back, waiting for the signal from Willow. She couldn't start until the dragon was safely out of the way, it would be too dangerous. She saw the beam of light shoot across the sky, heard Willow's voice speak in her head – "Now, Dawnie! Now!". It was time. She flew up, up above the battle below her, saw slayers, demons, Angel and his crew alike stop their fights to stare up at her. She, Dawn Summers, the Buffy's little sister, was the secret weapon that would win this battle. Only Willow and Xander there knew the extent of her powers, they knew the plan, to everyone else this was a surprise. She looked down, saw Spike gazing at her as if she'd suddenly grown a second head. Giggling to herself, Dawn felt as though every cell in her body was electrified – she was truly alive for the first time she could remember! As the figures below her began to fight again she started gather her energy. The girl sent out waves of energy, killing in an instant any of the enemy who were hit by them. Within minutes only the last few remained, fighting with a few slayers and Angel's "Fang Gang". They'd won the battle. Dawn smiled…

A.N. - As I have said this is my first fic. Any reviews are really really appreciated - Thanx to redlighting and Slayagewitch 4 reviews!


	4. Fallen

Disclaimer – I do not own any characters or settings from the shows Buffy or Angel. They belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy.

They had won the battle. Dawn smiled softly to herself, then suddenly began to fall, fall straight down to the ground, exhaustion filling her, losing consciousness as she fell, her brain screaming, "This is it! I'm gonna die!". As blackness took over her vision, she vaguely heard the yells of slayers, Angel calling out "Dawn!", Spike's anguished "No!", Andrew screaming, Xander's voice – "Catch her!", but through it all, one voice shouted "STOP!". Willow.

Willow had in fact, uttered the word in Latin. As she saw Dawn fall from the sky, she called out the spell almost without registering she'd done it. With a smile of relief, she saw it had worked.

Dawn's unconscious body floated down to the ground, to be caught by Spike. He carried her back to the group, laying her down on a pile of coats that was quickly created by the slayers. Memories of her sister, four years ago, lying on top of a pile of rubble flashed through his head. He listened closely, he could just about hear her heartbeat.

"She's alive."

"What happened?" "What was that?" "All that green light…" "How'd she do that?" "She flew!" – astounded murmurs sounded through the young slayers, but a small group stood around the still girl. Willow, Xander, Andrew, Faith, Angel, Spike, Gunn and Illyria were gathered around Dawn's body, shocked into silence.

"Care to explain, Willow?"

"Well, Angel,…"

"She's awake." Spike's voice broke in, and sure enough Dawn had opened her eyes.

"Will… Xand… I did it, right? It worked?" the girl asked.

"Yeah, Dawnie," Xander answered, "You did it, you saved us."

"What the bloody hell was that, bit?" the bleached vamp questioned, half angry that she'd tried that stunt, half proud that she'd pulled it off.

"It's a long story, Spike. Right now I just wanna get home. It took a lot out of me and no offence, Angel, but it sounds like you don't exactly have a rest house planned."

"Dawnie, are you have enough energy to teleport us all? I mean there's so many, and it's a long way, and you're tired…" Willow said concerned.

"I'll manage, Will," she replied, "I'll need a pretty big power source, but if all the girls joined together then…"

"I will be sufficient, I think," Illyria said, "I am nearer to the age of the Key and am more accustomed to travelling in such a way."

"Who is she again? She looks kind of like Fred, but not." Willow spoke to Xander in his head.

"Hell if I know. Ask Angel later." He replied.

"Okay then, Illyria.," Dawn said, then stopped.

"How do you know her name?" Gunn asked.

"I… I don't know. I just do. Weird. Well, Illyria, give me your hands," the girl answered.

To everyone's surprise, the God-King did as she asked. Dawn took Illyria's hands in her own and called out,

"Everyone, gather round! We're going home. Will, Xand, you know what to do, Angel, Spike, Gunn, you guys need to touch a couple of fingers to my arms, everyone else, grab onto someone who's touch me. Ready, Illyria? Let's go!"


	5. Gateway

Disclaimer - The characters from the shows Buffy and Angel are owned by Joss and ME.

A.N. - Thanks to Mad Tom for the tip, reviews are always welcomed!

Gateway

Spike watched as his Niblet's hair whipped up around – even though there was no wind. Green sparks flew around her and Illyria, growing, growing, until the air surrounding the group glowed and pulsated with energy. The girl's eyes were shut, concentration were clear on her young face. The vampire could see how much of a strain it was on her, but then the God-King began to glow, sending power to the girl. Dawn's face relaxed and she called out – "Hold on tight, guys! Don't wanna lose you!".

The strange group was pulled into a swirling vortex – the portal Dawn and Illyria had created between them. Blue and green mixed together throughout the tunnel they rushed through, creating a gateway in the distance. They hurtled towards it, falling through and landing suddenly on a cold floor. The young girl fainted backwards into Spike's arms, the journey had worn her out. Her stroked back the strands of hair that had fallen on her face, like he had done as she slept the summer that Buffy had been gone, before looking around him. Marble floors, sweeping staircases, pale cream walls, plain doors – yep, it was most probably the new Watcher's Council.

Willow confirmed his suspicions. "Welcome to the Watcher's Council. Hope you enjoy your stay."

"Right, everyone, follow me to the medical centre," Xander commanded, leading the way up the left hand stairway.

After two sets of stairs, two left turns and six doors, the group arrived in a room, judging by the distinct smell of disinfectant, this was the med. centre the whelp had mentioned. Reluctantly passing his Bit over to a doctor, Spike went over to Red and the Whelp and Watcher Jr.

"So, bleach-boy, you're not dead," Harris said, _that boy had always been brilliant at stating the obvious_, the bleached vamp thought, "well, still _dead_ but in the non-dusty sense."

"Yeah, guess so," was the reply.

"Hi, Spike," Andrew said, "it's good to see you again."

"Wait, Andrew, why don't you seem so surprised?" the red-headed witch asked.

"Erm, I deal quickly?" the blonde boy tried to lie.

"You're lying to me, Andrew," Willow accused.

"Wills, it's Andrew, since when can he lie?" Xander said, not believing that it was possible.

"Well, that's where you're wrong, mate. Boy's been lying to you for months. He's known about me for months," Spike admitted, figuring he may as well just bite the bullet now, "anyway, where's the Slayer, doesn't fit that she'd miss out on a fight like that and let lil' Sis go along, now."

"Yeah, well, about that, you see……….. Hey Giles!" The wiccan covered, _he can't find out like this, I can't just tell him, _the red-head mentally babbled to herself.

"Ah yes, hello, Willow. All went well, I trust. Wait a minute, Spike? What are you doing here? I – I mean HOW are you here? The Hellmouth….. Buffy…….. she said……" And with that, the glasses were off, being feverishly cleaned as Giles was wont to do.

_Oh, bugger, _the vampire thought, _this is not going to end well…………………_


	6. Reaction

Disclaimer - Look, you all know that I do not own Buffy or Angel (no matter how hard I wish) so why do I have to do this? Okay, okay. I own nothing, it all belongs to Joss. Happy now?

A.N.: Hope you enjoy - and reviews are most definately of the good.

Reaction

"… so the four of us were in the alley, getting ready to fight a bloody demon army. Gotta say, think the poof had lost his tiny brain think we could beat down the Senior Partners, but s'all for puppies and Christmas, right?" Spike trailed off, his story done.

"You…… you've been back that long? Why didn't you come see us, tell us?" Dawn sobbed.

"M'sorry, niblet, Peaches and his lot needed me in LA. Thought you'd be better off with out me," the peroxided vampire answered, inwardly hating himself for upsetting the girl.

"You big moron," the little girl who was really the Key sobbed, "Of course we wouldn't be. I needed you. She needed you. Buffy needed you, Spike. She still does."

"What do you mean, Dawn?" he questioned, frowning.

"Erm, Dawnie, maybe you should let Spike rest awhile," Willow said, trying to stop the girl from just telling the vampire straight. _Not like this, please. Goddess, don't let him find out like this. It should be private, it is private. But I'm scared to tell him…_

"No, Will, he needs to know, but not here. I'll take him to the medical office, tell him there. Okay?" Xander spoke to her, as if reading her mind.

"You sure, Xand?"

"Yep. Seems only fair that he knows, and it's not really something he'll want to hear in public. Spike, follow me."

Spike went with him, growing more concerned with every step he took. _What is it, _he thought, _what's happened to her? Oh god, what if she's gone?_


	7. Truth Time

Truth Time

"Spike, one thing before I tell you." Xander said.

"What?"

"No shooting the messenger, okay?"

"Get on with it, whelp," the vampire growled.

Taking that as agreement, Xander spoke again. "You may wanna sit down for this," he said, leaning against the desk. As Spike sat, he began his sorry tale.

"After you closed the hellmouth – "

"Wasn't me."

"Yes it was, Spike. Anyway, after you closed the hellmouth, Buffy only just escaped Sunnydale. We were stood on the edge of the crater when she just broke down. I've known Buffy for eight years, man, and I'd never seen her so bad before. Not when Joyce died, not when Dawn was taken, not even when she came back. She cried for hours, even after we'd lifted her into the bus again. She just didn't stop crying. Dawn and Willow stayed with her constantly, Dawn was hurting too, and I think Will figured it out first, what had gone down. I should have realised sooner, but I guess I was too wrapped up in losing Anya. Buffy cried all the way to LA."

"We got to the Hyperion, walked right in, carrying her……"

Flashback

Willow laid Buffy down on a sofa, as the Slayer's sister curled up next to her, holding onto her, soothing her.

"Hello! Angel, are you here?" Giles called.

"Giles?" the vampire asked, coming down the stairs, "What happened? Are you all OK? Did you win? Oh, god, Buffy!"

"We won, Angel."

"Yep, activated some Potentials, kicked the First's incorporeal ass, slayed some Uber-vamps. It's all five-by-five," Faith put in.

"Not quite, Faith. We lost some," Dawn said, looking up at the group, her arms still wrapped around her sister.

"Who?" Angel said quietly, taking note of the tears coursing down the girl's pale face.

But it was Willow who replied. "Some of the girls, as well as Anya," she answered, sending an understanding glance to Xander, "and Spike. The amulet worked, Angel. But he died using it."

_Spike, _Angel thought, _how can Spike be gone? I guess he really had changed._ Angel was just about to go into full-on brood-mode, when the rest of his team arrived behind him.

"Willow!" Fred exclaimed, spotting the red-head in the lobby.

"I take it you won?" Wesley said, "Well, you must all be very tired. Come with me, we have plenty of rooms to spare."

End Flashback

"So we stayed in LA for around a fortnight. Buffy was still hurting, I could tell, but she never mentioned it to me. I know she spoke with Dawnie and Wills, maybe she was afraid to tell me, thought I wouldn't understand about how she felt. Truth is, I wasn't the one she should have been worrying about. She spoke to Angel, and, well……….."

Flashback

Xander turned, hearing yelling coming from Angel's office.

"How could you say that, Angel? You weren't there! You didn't see how he'd changed!" his best friend screamed.

"This is Spike we're talking about, Buffy! Spike! I can't believe you're being so stupid!"

"How dare you! God, I can't believe you! I hardly know you anymore, Angel!"

"The Buffy I knew would never have reacted like this! Spike has tried to kill you before Buffy! He tried to rape you, for God's sake!"

At that moment Xander knew Angel had gone to far. He'd never liked Spike much, but the bleached vamp had sacrificed himself for the world. He burst into the office, storming up to the dark-haired vampire, shielding the Slayer behind his body. She didn't need protecting, he knew, but he could tell Angel's words had hurt her. Whatever he had said before had been out of line.

"Now, look here, Deadboy," Xander spat, "You have no right to talk to her like that! Spike changed, a hell of a lot these past few years. I didn't want to see it then, but now it's as clear as day. He gave up his life for the world, even though he didn't have to. He wasn't the Powers' Champion, like you, or a Slayer like Buffy, Faith and the girls. God knows we didn't make it easy for him to change, but he did it anyway. He did some dumb things, but so did we all. You of al people should know how hard it is to change so much. Just remember this, Fangbreath, you were cursed with a soul. You didn't want it, you didn't earn it. Spike did. He went half way around the world to his, for Buffy. To try to atone for what he had done. He looked after Dawn when Buffy was gone, without being asked. He just did it, to keep his promise to her sister. He was a good man, even if I was too blind to see it. So leave Buffy alone. She has been through too much for you to talk to her like that. Don't even dare hurt Buffy like this again, or I swear, I will personally stake you, champion or no."

With that, he took Buffy by the arm, leading her quickly out of the office and up to the room she shared with Willow.

End Flashback

"We left that night, stayed in a motel until we could catch a plane. I could tell Buffy wanted to be out of LA, out of the country. She wanted to be far away from Angel. He'd hurt her bad, Spike, so bad she hasn't spoken to him since. Willow booked us onto a plane to England for a few days later, until then, none of us went near Angel and his group. I guess you know that we don't exactly have the highest regard for him right now, and I don't know how long it'll take him to win it back, if that's even possible. Anyway, we arrived in London, and Giles immediately began work on the New Council, with help from Wills, Buffy and me. Buffy was determined that no Slayer would ever be treated like she was again. We've made a hell of a lot of changes to the old Watcher's Council traditions, believe me. We thought Buffy was coping, we really did. Unfortunately, we were wrong. She wasn't, she was just pretending and planning. One night, around four months ago, she didn't come down to dinner. Dawnie went to look for her and we just heard screaming…

Flashback

"Xander! Willow! Giles! Faith! Get here NOW!" Dawn's voice yelled.

The named people ran out of the dining room, closely followed by Robin, Kennedy and Andrew. They shot up the stairs, towards Dawn's screams. Faith was first to reach the door, and threw it open to reveal…


	8. All Is Revealed

Disclaimer - In case you do not already realise this, I have no ownership of anything from Buffy or Angel. It all belongs to Joss.

All Is Revealed…

"Oh god, B…" Faith whispered. Buffy was lying on her bed, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, not moving an inch, red stains spreading through her sheets.

"Buffy!" Xander said, voice pleading, as he moved with Willow to her side, "Please, Buffy, don't be dead, please!"

Willow bent down, leaning her cheek towards Buffy, feeling for breath, hand checking her for a pulse – there! It was weak, and her breath was faint, but she was alive!

"She's not. Giles, we need to get here to the hospital wing, quickly!" Willow said, relief evident in her voice – there was hope.

Dawn was crying in the corner, her tears falling to the carpet. Her mouth opened to speak, but instead of words green light poured out, followed by a stream of Latin.

"Mundus teneo mei origo, teneo mei potestas! Ego duco sumo is ea id proeliator preliator adivo! Cum mei potestas, ego sumo te modo!" 

Suddenly the group found themselves in the hospital, Buffy lying on a bed and Dawn collapsed on the floor.

"What was that?" Kennedy questioned, looking to Willow for an answer.

"World know my origins, know my power. I command you to take this warrior to help. With my power, I command you now. Dawn's power as the Key must still be there," Giles answered, gaining shocked looks from Willow and Xander, completely confused looks from the rest, "we will have to research later, after I have explained. For now Buffy and Dawn are our main priority."

End Flashback

"Dawnie was okay, she was just worn out from the sudden usage of power. She can used them at will know, Willow and Giles have been teaching her Latin so she can command them better. She's in complete harmony with her power, it's like nothing we've ever known. There's no rejection of her gifts, like Giles was afraid of. She isn't too reliant upon it, or too proud, like some of our new slayers. There's no chance of her going off into the deep end. She's got it sorted."

"And Buffy?" Spike questioned, fearing the answer.

"I'm sorry, Spike. She's gone comatose. We don't know why, all her cuts have faded and she's not suffering from blood loss anymore. It's like she doesn't want to wake up, or can't for some reason. Willow's tried, together with the coven, to wake her, and Dawnie has too. We won't give up, though, Spike . We'll never give up." Xander finished, conviction filling his last statement.

"But… she was in Rome. We saw her – we went to the apartment!" Spike said, eyes pleading with Xander, desperately wanting that to be true.

"No. We didn't want Angel to know, he'd hurt her enough. Willow and the coven created magical doubles of us all, so that he'd think they were real. Accurate right down to the scent. When Andrew went to LA, that was the only real contact we had with Angel. Well, except for that time in Rome. Dawnie teleported Andrew out there to fool him. We didn't find out about Fred until it was too late. The copies activities weren't checked constantly, we didn't know until a week later. Believe me, had any of us known in time, we would have helped. No matter what, we would have tried."

Spike sat, attempting to take this in. Xander let him be, knowing it was a lot to take in. Finally, the vampire spoke,

"Can I see her?"


	9. Love Or Hate

Love Or Hate

Disclaimer - If you recognise it from the shows, I do not own it.

Meanwhile…

The rest of the Scooby and Fang Gangs sat in silence in the main hospital centre. Not the kind of easy, comfortable silence shared with friends, more the it-is-so-obvious-some-of-us-want-to-kill-other-people-sat-here-so-I'm-not-saying-anything-in-case-they-kill-me-instead type. You know, the really, really awkward kind. Willow sat with Kennedy on one side, Dawn the other. Andrew took up Kennedy's far side. Giles sat on Dawn's other side, both he and the red-head knowing that if Angel so much as looked at her funny, she would blow up, and with her kind of power, that was not good. Although she wasn't quite as powerful as Willow could be, Dawn needed no time to gather hers, unlike the resident Wiccan, and the young Summers was so mad at the elder vamp that she might bring back her more immature counterpart, immediately losing her cool.

Across the room, Angel sat in between his team, Gunn to his left, Illyria on the right. He could practically smell the hatred and anger rolling of the teenager, he could certainly feel it. If looks could stake…

The Old One gazed at the girl, so young in appearance, yet one of her own time in years. Appearances could be deceiving, she knew this, in this shell, Illyria herself did not look as powerful as she was, but this girl held pure ancient power. She was one that Illyria deemed similar to herself, although the Key was never an Old One, it was revered in her time. This girl, no matter her human form, was an equal. Illyria's cool eyes moved along the line, over the red-head, the Slayer, not a true Slayer, but a Slayer nonetheless – wait, there was something about the red-headed woman. There was power around her, too. Not primal power, like that of Illyria, or the Key, or a true Slayer. Not new, like that of a New Slayer, somewhere in between. The human was a witch, and a strong one at that. _Willow…_The shell's voice spoke in her ear. So this was the girl who'd re-ensouled Angel twice, a tricky spell to say the least. The shell recalled the girl telling her that it was her first spell, an impressive feat, the Old One knew. This Willow had also tried to end to world. She held power to be reckoned with.

Xander entered from the office, followed by Spike. The blonde vampire walked straight past the group, headed towards a side room. The Scooby stopped and consulted with Giles, before joining the rest.

"Well, Xander has informed me that the wounded are being dealt with, so I think it would be best to show our guests around," Giles said to the Scoobies, before turning to the last members of the Fang Gang, "so we'll wait for Spike and then be on our way."

Spike turned from the main room and down a corridor, on his way to her. To Buffy. He'd spent nearly a year away from her, and he couldn't stand it any longer. He strode towards the door, the only thing separating him from her now, and hesitated. Was he really ready for all of Xander's tale to be proven true? Was he prepared to see her like this? Yes, came the answer, he had to, or he'd never believe it. He walked on.

Stepping inside her room, Spike took in the girl he hadn't set eyes on since down in the Hellmouth. She was still as beautiful as ever. Spike breathed in, wanting to fill his lungs with her scent, but wait… Something was different, he could sense it. He ran.

Giles turned, hearing running footsteps approaching. Spike rushed into his vision, clearly panicking, and the only things known to panic the bleached-blonde vampire were, well, Buffy and Dawn's wellbeing. As the latter was stood perfectly healthily in front of him, the Watcher could only assume this had something to do with the Slayer. His worries were confirmed when Spike spoke.

"Something's wrong with Buffy!"

"She's in a coma, Spike," Dawn answered consolingly, inadvertedly shocking Angel completely.

"No, Nibblet, something else. Her scent's not right."

"What do you mean, Spike? She doesn't smell like Buffy?" Willow questioned, concerned for her friend.

"No, well, yes, she still smells like herself. But it's too faint, too weak. Even a coma can't make a human's scent fade that much, and certainly not a Slayer's. It's like she's left the place a few months ago, there's an imprint, but nothing more. It's as if she's not really there."


	10. Interlude Or Old Habits Die Hard

Interlude (Or Old Habits Die Hard)

The responses to his words came thick and fast, layering over each other, making it hard for Spike to work out who was speaking, as the voices quickly becoming a fountain of disjointed sentences…

"Oh dear Lord!" _That'll be Giles…_

"Buffy's in a coma?" _Got to be the Poof - who else?_

"Oh my Goddess!" _Red._

"Say what now?" _The Whelp, of course._

"Buffy…" _His Niblet._

"Are you sure? Is there anything else or it that the only sign?" _Wait… who was that…_Spike glanced around - _Andrew? No way…_

But it was. The boy had really changed after becoming a Watcher. Spike was silent for a moment, desperately trying to recall the few seconds he'd spent in Buffy's room.

"I'm sure, there's nothing else off," was the eventually reply.

"Research time, then, huh? Giles, shall I get Faith and Robin? I think they are still looking after the mini-Slayers…"

"Hey!"

"Sorry, Kennedy! Sorry! Please don't hurt me!" _Not all that different then._

Giles was momentarily stunned. Andrew had obviously learnt a lot in the last year. The elder Watcher nodded, he could not have come up with a better plan himself.

"Yay! Research party – it'll be just like old times!" Willow said happily, immediately blushing crimson at the weird looks she received, reminding Angel of the shy, geeky girl he had met nearly eight years ago, "Er, well, shall I fill Angel's team in, Giles?"

The watcher nodded again. _Only one thing not mentioned yet…_ Spike thought with a smirk, _then it'd really be just like back in good old Sunnyhell…_

"I'll get the donuts!" Xander said.

Spike barely suppressed a laugh as the mixed groups headed of in the general direction of the library. As he turned to follow them he heard Gunn speak to the Great Poofter –

"Do they get donuts every time they research? Dawg, I thought you weren't evil!"


	11. Long Time, No See

Long Time, No See

The group sat in the library, books piled on top of the tables in front of them. Willow was rapidly searching the Internet for a clue, Faith and Angel had gone to beat up some demons for information, Illyria was making use of the Shell's knowledge to try and solve it with science, Dawn was trying to portal to Buffy to help her return, but with no avail, the rest were hitting the books. Spike was guarding Buffy's body, hoping desperately for her scent to grow stronger.

"Something's blocking me!" Dawn complained, losing the ethereal glow that had been surrounding her.

"What do you mean, Dawnie?" Willow asked her, concern filling her voice.

"I can get so far, but then I'm stopped. A voice keeps saying 'It is not yet time. The conference is not finished'. What if Buffy can't leave wherever she is until it is time?"

"Whistler!" Angel breathed, causing the group to jump – no-one had heard him enter.

"Who?" Gunn questioned.

"A messenger from the Powers That Be. He was the one who convinced me to go to Sunnydale eight years ago, to become a Champion. He also told Buffy what she had to do seven years back. That she had to kill me. Dawn, could you portal him here? He may know something."

"This guy's connected to the Powers? I'd have to go through the proper channels, I'd need one heck of a large battery. Bigger than Illyria even."

"Why?" Xander asked her.

"I'd have to find him, ask him to come, then transport him here. I'd need to keep a long distance portal open for a fair while."

"How do you know that, Dawn?" Giles said.

"I – I don't know. It's like before, I don't know how I know it, but I know it's true."

"Would Illyria and me do it?" Willow offered.

"It's worth a try." Dawn conceded.

The three sat inside a triple circle, with entwined white, gold, blue and green ribbons of powder. The colours symbolised the three powers joined as one. They linked hands and Dawn began to chant, the others joining in. Green light encircled the young Key, white wrapped itself round the Wiccan and blue came from the God-King, fusing together to form a column of golden power, shooting up to the ceiling. Moments passed and the three continued to chant, the beam growing steadily more intense. Slowly, a shadowy form materialised inside the column, becoming clearer and more solid. When it was done, the three power-beams disappeared, the golden light vanishing, leaving Whistler standing before them.

"Angel, long time no see. Nice to know the Champion thing worked out for you. Now, these lovely ladies said you wanted a word?"


	12. Old Friends

Disclaimer : I do not own anything from the shows Buffy or Angel - It all belongs to Joss.

Old Friends

"Hello, Whistler. Yeah, I need a word. It's Buffy," the dark haired vampire said.

"Buffy? You mean the Slayer? She here?" Whistler said, feigning surprise.

"Yes, she is, and don't try to pretend you don't know exactly what this is about."

"Er, Angel?" Willow questioned, "You haven't told him yet. He can't know."

"Oh yes he can, Willow. He's a messenger from the Powers. When I met him the first time he knew the entire situation and my entire past."

"Oh."

"Now, Whistler, tell me what's going on, or you'll regret it." Angel threatened, stepping closer to the man, a glint in his eye that reminded all those present of Angelus. His hand closed around Whistler's neck, pushing him quickly into the nearest wall.

"Angel!" Dawn screamed, shocked by the sudden violence.

"Now, now, Angel. You're a Champion, you know you can't kill me, no matter how hard you try," Whistler choked out.

"Yeah, it's in the contract, but you see, she could," Angel said, indicating Illyria, "and she's just itching for a fight. Plus, she would think of a more painful way to kill you than me. So be glad I'm the one doing the violence here."

"Angel, no! This isn't the way. I know he has information, but he won't be able to give us it if you crush his throat," Xander reasoned.

"Fine," the vampire said, casting the Messenger away into a chair.

"Now, Whistler, please tell us what you know. Buffy could die. She's close to now." The quiet serious tone of the Wiccan's voice, touched the man, he didn't know that the Slayer's friends had no clue as to her whereabouts, or that the Slayer had been away in conference that long.

"She's with the Powers That Be. That doesn't answer your question properly, I know. This will." Whistler snapped his fingers, causing a TV to appear in the middle of the room.

"A TV?" Faith questioned, "Excuse me, but how can the BBC, or whatever you guys have over here, answer our questions?"

"Just watch."

The TV crackled to life by itself, images began to appear on the screen, showing the group scenes from months back…

Flashback

Buffy sat alone in her room, crying. She finished writing in her diary, then kissed it and put it aside. She pulled out a knife, and lifted it to her right wrist. Before she made the cut, she began to sing, her voice wavering and tears streaming down her face.

"Early one morning, just as the sun was rising…" She cut her wrist deep, moving the knife to her left wrist.

"I heard a young maid sing in the valley below…" She cuts that wrist too.

"Oh, don't deceive me, oh, never leave me…" She makes deep, long cuts in both of her calves.

"How could you use a poor maiden so?" She lifts the knife to her neck, swiftly slicing her jugular vein, before dropping the knife and falling backwards across the bed.

End Flashback

"She wanted to die, poor girl. She missed him that much. If the Powers hadn't stepped in, she would have done."

Flashback

Buffy looks around the space, seeing nothing but whiteness.

"Am I dead?" She wonders aloud.

"No," a girl says, stepping out from the ether, followed by an older woman, possibly her mother, then an even older woman.

"No thanks to your little stunt," a boy continues, appearing on her other side, with two men, one around the same age as the first woman, the other older.

"I wanted out, okay! What is this the Spanish Inquistion!" Buffy said. The six people laughed.

"This is merely a meeting." The females spoke together, Buffy realised, as one.

"And you're invited," the males added.

"Oh, goodie, lucky me," the Slayer answered, sarcasm dripping from every syllable.

"Indeed, Slayer."

"We have a proposal for you." The six beings began to circle her, the words coming from the females and males in turn.

"You can go back, you know."

"You can live."

"I don't want to, I can't. Not without…" Buffy's voice trailed away.

"He's not gone."

"He's there, waiting."

"But first, our offer."

"They can all go back."

"All live."

"What do you mean?"

"Every one of your little group of friends who died during the fight, any fight, or who fought and died in LA, can live once more." They began to list them, in the order they died, the named person appearing in the space.

"Wesley."

"Fred."

"Cordelia."

"Anya."

"Jonathon."

"Tara."

"Doyle."

"Jenny."

"Where do I sign?"

End Flashback

"She agreed. But the trails, they must not be over yet. If she wins, they'll all be back soon."

Dawn looked towards the Messenger. "And if she loses?"

"She'll die." He disappeared.

Spike raised his head. There were tears streaming down his face. The group was stunned, no- one, had seen the bleached blonde cry since Buffy had died. "It's all my fault," he said, "I should have come back. None of this would have happened if I had come back to her."

"No, Spike," Giles said, "This would have happen anyway. It seems the Power That Be have been planning a surprise for us."


	13. Reunion

Reunion

Three Weeks Later…

Spike had spent all his time at his Slayer's side. The others had tried to coax him away, but Dawn and Willow had stopped them. They at least seemed to understand that he needed to be there. The reason he sat with her? Well, apart from watching over her like a guardian, he was waiting for her scent to get stronger, as they thought this would be a sign of her waking. He just watched, and waited, never sleeping, just taking some blood if his Niblet or Red brought him a mug. He had not moved from her room, until a desperate call forced him to.

"Spike!" Dawn screamed, "Demons! There's too many!" The new girls were all out on patrol with Faith – leaving no Slayer to defend the Council. Apparently news of the eldest Slayer's fate had reached the other side, so they'd planned an attack for when the Council was weakest, in the hopes of killing Buffy Summers once and for all. He heard the cry, and went to fight. He'd protect her better that way.

When he reached to battle ground, he saw a near army of mixed demons. Willow stood a little way off from the fight, throwing energy ball after energy ball into the throng. Trouble was she couldn't aim particularly well, so couldn't use anything to powerful. The rest fought hand-to-hand. Even Dawn.

"Niblet! Why not use your mojo?" he yelled to the girl.

"I can't! My little stunt in LA was kind of a one time deal – and the portals wore me out. I've only got enough just enough for this!"

_In short,_ Spike thought, _we're screwed. The Slayers'll never get back soon enough._

They fought, killing as many demons as they could, but they just kept on coming. They never stopped coming.

With Buffy….

The misty figures of her friends became more solid, stepping forward towards the Slayer. They quickly fell into a many-armed hug, relishing their new-found bodies. Out of the corner of her eye, Buffy recognised three more figures forming, and trying to step forward. The six Powers descended on them, forcing them back.

"Wait!" The Slayer called, "Who are they?"

Buffy left her friends, looking closely at the newcomers.

"Let them come with us if they fought! They deserve the chance, too!"

"They may go with you," the six voices spoke as one, "you will return soon. When the time is right."

The six disappeared. The three new figures walked into Buffy's vision. She recognised the tall dark girl first.

"Kendra!" Buffy whispered, "You want to go back?"

"Yes. My time is not yet done, I think. You will need another trained Slayer to help you with the New," the girl answered, "I have brought you a gift. Yourself."

The elder Slayer looked at the other two. The first was her sixteen year old self, dress as she was when she was killed by the Master. The second, she recognised as herself when she had jumped to save Dawn three years ago.

"What… how?" she questioned her sister-Slayer.

"Each time you died, a part of you stayed here. At sixteen, a small part of you chose to remain behind. After your second death, another part of you gave up. They come so you can be whole again. Just touch together, and be one."

Buffy stepped closer to her past selves. She reached up a hand, the other two did so at the same time. Their fingers touched, and they were joined. The change in the Slayer was immense. She looked younger, less worn. Happy. Complete. Ready.

"It is time," a voice spoke, as Buffy's Scythe materialised in her hands, "for you to join the battle."

The fight…

In the middle of the battle field a glowing golden sphere appeared, with shadowy figures inside. The fighters backed away, wondering what this could be. The light intensified, causing them to shield their eyes. The glow subsided, a shout came from within, "Get ready!".

The reinforcements had arrived.

Buffy and Kendra shot out into the battle, killing ten demons before they registered what was happening. Anya, Cordelia, Doyle, Wesley and Fred following them close behind. Jenny, Tara and Jonathon began to chant. Willow, who had abandoned her energy balls to fight face-to-face, immediately remembered this spell, ran to them and joined them in the magick. Within minutes, the fight was over, leaving the Scoobies to stare speechlessly at the new arrivals.

Willow turned to Tara, enfolding her in a hug, sobbing, "Oh, baby, I missed you so bad!"

Giles gazed at his old love, Jenny Calender. "Jenny?" he said, "Is it you?"

"Yes, Rupert," came the reply and he walked to her side.

"Ahn," Xander whispered hoarsely. The ex-vengeance demon rushed to him, a look of pure happiness on her face.

Andrew stepped shakily towards Jonathon. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, Jonathon."

"It's okay," he replied, "I know what happened."

Angel turned to Wes, Fred, Doyle and Cordy. "I'm sorry," he said.

"What for, you big softy!" Cordelia exclaimed, "None of it was your fault!"

Spike just stared. Buffy walked shyly to him, one small hand reaching up to his cheek.

"Spike," she said, "I missed you. And I meant what I said."

"I know, pet," he answered, "I only said you didn't to get you out of there, couldn't have you dying again." The blonde couple were in each others arms in an instant, neither sure who had made the first move.

Everything was as it should be.


End file.
